The Surajkund International Crafts Mela is attended by more than a million people every year. It is an annual fair and crafts festival where you will find a beautiful display of crafts from the painters, weavers, sculptors, and craftspeople who come here from across the country to showcase the regional and international crafts and traditions.

You will get to experience simple joy de-Vivre after you witness the vibrant colors and the rhythmic beats of the drum at the Surajkund International Crafts Mela held in Faridabad, Haryana every year from 1st February onwards. It is a huge celebration of Indian folk traditions and cultural heritage.

The Surajkund has found a place on the international tourist calendar as over a million tourists visit the Mela during the month of February. Thousands of foreign tourists arrive to witness this amazing Crafts Mela in India. The Surajkund Mela showcases the rich and diverse art from different parts of the country including handicrafts, handlooms and the showcase of the cultural fabric of India. It is by far the largest crafts fair in the world.

The Surajkund Mela Authority & Haryana Tourism in collaboration with the Union Ministries of Tourism, Textiles, Culture, and External Affairs have organized the Surajkund Mela. The 34th Surajkund International Crafts Mela will be held this year. More than 20 countries and all the states of India will participate in the fair.

There will be a number of famous national and international folk artistes and cultural groups who will present their performances at both the Chaupals and the open-air theatres located on the premises of the Mela. Exciting cultural evening programs happen at the main Chaupal during the evenings at the Mela. 

You will find a showcase of the heritage crafts that are made using traditional skills. These skills are now quickly fading away due to the introduction of the cheaper machine-made imitation crafts. A special section has been dedicated to showcasing these.

There is also a multi-cuisine Food Court at Mela where you can try out the various ethnic cuisines from all over the world. Apart from this, Mela also houses a separate area for the amusement, adventure sports and various joy rides which makes it interesting for the kids. Let your kids enjoy the rides at the play zone while you are busy shopping around at the Mela. There is a variety of rides including the Ferris Wheel, Bungee Jumping, video games, and others.

In the year 2013, the Surajkund fair had been upgraded to the status of an international level fair. In the year 2015, there were 20 countries that had participated in the Mela with Lebanon being the Partner Nation and the theme state was Chhattisgarh. The Surajkund fair was first hosted in the year 1987. Last year's Mela was attended by approximately 13 lakh people including 1 lakh foreign tourists.

The Mela showcases the unique diversity of our country's traditions and culture. The ethos of rural India is represented well at the fair. Handmade fabrics that are soaked in unique ethnic colors are displayed in an attractive manner for the visitors at the Surajkund International Crafts Mela.

The mela presents a wide range of handloom and handicraft products. Some of the things that you can buy at the Fair include:

Textiles, Paintings, beautifully crafted items made from wood, ivory, stonework, lacquerware, cane, and grass, pottery, food items, home decor items, Organic and Ayurvedic goods, Naturally made cosmetics and body care products and so much more.

There are also many unique things from the different states of India that you can buy at the Surajkund Mela this year at affordable prices. These include:

Sandalwood and rosewood carvings from South India, Banarasi Sarees from Varanasi, Madhubani painting from Bihar, Puppetry and spices from Rajasthan, Tibetan bells and clothes from North East, The ‘Chikri’ woodcraft from Kashmir, beautiful cane craft and ‘Kantha’ traditions from West Bengal, ‘Phulkari’ embroidery from Punjab, Terracotta products from Delhi, ‘Banjara’, ‘Bandhani’, and ‘Bunni’ embroidery from Gujarat, Lace and crochet from Goa, Chikan work from Lucknow and there is so much more offered at the Mela.

Not just the Indian handicrafts but the Surajkund Mela also showcases the best international crafts as well. These include:

Brass ornaments, mulberry paper stationery, and celadon ware from Thailand, Carpets, pottery, mosaic, and glass lanterns from Egypt, Traditional folding fans, porcelain, and Lacquerware from Japan, Jade figurines and Chinese silk from China, Tea, Batik fabric, and gems from Sri Lanka and so much more.

The theme state selected for the year will be presenting their Folk performances throughout the festival. Just head to the  ‘Natyashala’, the amphitheater area inside the mela that has been designated for the folk performances. Various cultural programs are held at the Mela some of which include folk dance performances, skits and street plays, musical evenings, ‘Kavi Sammelans’, and the stunt shows. Enjoy these performances along with your loved ones at the Mela.

The Surajkund International Crafts Mela is unique as it gives a chance to one of the Indian states to be selected as the Theme State each year. For the 34th Surajkund International Crafts Mela-2020, Himachal Pradesh is chosen as the Theme State. In the year 2019, Maharashtra was chosen as the theme state for the fair.

The Surajkund Craft Mela 2020 ticket is priced between INR 50/- to INR 200/-. The ticket prices for the 2020 mela would cost:

Weekdays: INR 120/- per person

Weekends: INR 180/- per person

The venue of the Surajkund Craft Mela 2020:  Surajkund, District Faridabad

Dates: Held between 1st February 2020 to 16th February 2020.

Surajkund Mela Timings: The Mela will start from 9:30 AM to 7:00 PM every day

How to reach the Surajkund Mela: 

By air: Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport is the closest airport to the Mela venue. From the airport, it will take about 35 minutes to reach the venue.

By road: Surajkund is well-connected to the cities of Gurgaon, Delhi, and Faridabad via the road.

By train: New Delhi is the nearest railway station to the Mela. You can take a cab or bus once you reach the station.

Also read:- Experience the natural beauty of the beautiful Kodaikanal Town in Tamil Nadu







image source- India today , memorable india , anartline